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Functions and roles of drama in theatre
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The Illusion by Tony Kushner illustrates the journey of a lawyer, Pridamant, in search of his son, Clindor. Pridamant ventures off to the cave of the magician, Alcandre, in the hopes that Alcandre will help him find his son. Throughout the play, Alcandre reveals three scenes to Pridamant which show the life of his son. Each scene reveals the same characters. However, in each scene the characters have different names. Pridamant must helplessly watch the perils his son undergoes throughout his life. Although the playwright presents different components in the play, action is the most compelling. The actions that Kushner depict throughout the play compel the reader to continue reading to find out what happens to the characters.
Of the different aspects the playwright provides, action is the most compelling. Action is an intriguing part of the play because it is what moves the play. Motivation of fulfilling a task is what drives the character to keep going. Action is more compelling than theme in that the actions made by the characters display the theme to the audience. The actions convince the audience that the message of the play is significant. Additionally, action is more riveting than conflict. Although conflict is enthralling, a play cannot start out in conflict. The audience is interested to see all the events that occur in a play, not just the conflict. Robert Cohen argues, in Theatre, that starting a play with conflict will confuse the audience (33). Actions must occur and increase intensity in order for a conflict to occur. Likewise, conflict is resolved through action. The audience is enticed to see what the characters will do to rectify the conflict. Although characters are an essential component to have in a play, the ac...
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...or is an actor. In those moments, Pridamant’s actions of tearing down the curtain and crying reveal more to the audience than his dialogue would. It proves that Pridamant feels remorse over mistreating his son and he wishes that he could have his son back.
The playwright provides many aspects to create a play and to make it interesting. The actions and dialogue the characters make must be fluid and have a purpose. The playwright entices the audience with the different aspects to captivate their attention and keep it throughout the play. In The Illusion, Tony Kushner provides vivid details of the characters’ actions through dialogue. The actions characters perform absorbs the audience’s attention and leaves them wanting to see more of what will happen next to the characters. Although all aspects provided by the playwright are essential, action is the most riveting.
Mark Lambeck uses the drama’s setting to relate Intervention to the audience. Specifically, he uses a vague yet understandable modern time. An audience can relate knowing they could experience the same thing on any given day. The location of the play is also a place an audience could easily find themselves. It is vague place that could represent almost anywhere, perhaps in where the audience is. In the current world, one could easily find themselves walking down the street on their cell phone. The characters are constant...
Cosi uses a wide range of Dramatic elements, all through-out the play. This play particularly highlights The Tension, the Role and the way the characters portray their selves on stage. The use of these techniques allows the audience to accept more readily the intent of the play. It draws everyone into a world, that in many ways is foreign to us, but the human interaction, with the characters, makes it seem more real.
Filmmaking and cinematography are art forms completely open to interpretation in a myriad ways: frame composition, lighting, casting, camera angles, shot length, etc. The truly talented filmmaker employs every tool available to make a film communicate to the viewer on different levels, including social and emotional. When a filmmaker chooses to undertake an adaptation of a literary classic, the choices become somewhat more limited. In order to be true to the integrity of the piece of literature, the artistic team making the adaptation must be careful to communicate what is believed was intended by the writer. When the literature being adapted is a play originally intended for the stage, the task is perhaps simplified. Playwrights, unlike novelists, include some stage direction and other instructions regarding the visual aspect of the story. In this sense, the filmmaker has a strong basis for adapting a play to the big screen.
Firstly let us consider conflict. In each act of the play, we see the overpowering desire to belong leading to a climax of conflict amongst the characters, which has the consequence of exclusion. Conflict is a successful literary technique, as it engages the audience and focuses our attention on the issue of conflict and exclusion, brought about by the characters’ desires to be accepted by their community.
Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night is a comedy that has been interpreted in different ways, enabling one to receive multiple experiences of the same story. Due to the content and themes of the play, it can be creatively challenging to producers and their casting strategies. Instead of being a hindrance, I find the ability for one to experiment exciting as people try to discover strategies that best represent entertainment for the audience, as well as the best ways to interpret Shakespeare’s work.
words so that the sound of the play complements its expression of emotions and ideas. This essay
Throughout A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, there are multiple analyses that one can follow in order to reach a conclusion about the overall meaning of the play. These conclusions are reached through analyzing the play’s setting, characterization, and tone. However, when one watches the production A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Michael Hoffman, a completely different approach is taken on these aspects, leading to a vastly different analysis of the work. Though there are many similarities between the original written play A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare and the on-screen production of the aforementioned play which was directed by Michael Hoffman, there are differences in setting and
“The Illusionist” is a short story by Steven Millhauser, which was adapted into a movie directed by Neil Burger in 2008 which both take place in Vienna. The short story’s plot revolves around Eisenheim and his relationship between himself and the state, which is still featured in the movie. Eisenheim’s illusions also cause him a bit of trouble; in the short story the cause of trouble is an illusion, which produces two spirits by the name of Rosa, Elis, and a boy who appears to be no older than eight. In the movie adaptation, the final straw that causes the Crown Prince to finally pursue persecution of Eisenheim is the illusion that again, produces a spirit, which turns out to be his dead fiancée. Because of Inspector Uhl’s growing obsession of Eisenheim, throughout the movie and the short story, it further ignites the blur between what is the reality and what is his illusion. Uhl’s obsession over Eisenheim and his illusions helps blur the reality around him.
The message of Richard Bach’s Illusions is based on the concept that the things we interpret in the world as reality are actually illusions. This is made evident to one of the main characters, Richard, through his interactions with his newly found friend, Donald Shimoda. Donald Shimoda is a “messiah”, and he has gifts that he uses to help mankind. A quote that Richard reads is “Here is a test to find whether your mission on earth is finished: If you’re alive, it isn’t” (121). During the entire story, Don proves this quote to be true. Donald works to share his gifts and carry out his mission on earth.
The actions of Hamlet have changed up to the performance. Hamlet's behavior of being mad and depressed changed with the players because they are not involved with his "real" life and feels at ease and at his best, a prince reminding artists of the ideals their art is meant to uphold. The meanings of words have also changed. The meaning of "acting" plays a great role in the performance, not only by the observation of the entire audience, but by a more private and personal meaning or understanding of the play by Hamlet and the King.
...onnects his audience to the characters and although the play is written for the Elizabethan era, it remains pertinent by invoking the notion of human nature. He implements themes of love, anger, and impulsiveness and demonstrates the influence these emotions have on human behavior. It is evident that because human nature is constant, people have and will continue to be affected by these emotions.
Many would perceive madness and corruption to play the most influential role in Hamlet. However, it could be argued that the central theme in the tragedy is Shakespeare's presentation of actors and acting and the way it acts as a framework on which madness and corruption are built. Shakespeare manifests the theme of actors and acting in the disassembly of his characters, the façades that the individuals assume and the presentation of the `play within a play'. This intertwined pretence allows certain characters to manipulate the actions and thoughts of others. For this reason, it could be perceived that Shakespeare views the `Elsinorean' tragedy as one great puppet show, "I could see the puppets dallying".
of the play and the conflicts in it. Inner conflict is one of the most
The production attempt of displaying things in familiar way that is accurate to life. Costumes give a visual appealing sense of how people were likely to wear. Each character’s costume needs to match their class standing in the society that the people could have worn. Actions that done by the characters as a response because of something that has happened or due to the fact that they have a motive, is important to the play but have to be done in an understandable or reasonable way. Dialogue has to close to what someone say as if they are having a real life conversation. In the production that was so important to showcasing any play is portraying it something with as much accuracy to where it becomes hard to distinguish what could happen versus what is not really likely to happen. The more a production pays attention to details such as costumes, actions, and dialogue and the more the actors can succeed in performing a truthful
...hich the play leads, it is the conflict in the struggle for the power it represents, and the resolution in the harmony it provides.